BCBS of MA now accepting UCAOA AccreditationUCAOA UCAOA last week was notified by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts that UCAOA Accreditation is now one of the acceptable accreditation programs for urgent care centers. The impetus for BCBS of MA's decision was the recent accreditation of CareWell Urgent Care. UCAOA Accreditation is the only program of its kind to showcase those urgent care centers that meet both certification criteria for scope of services and accreditation standards of quality and safety. UCAOA accredited organizations are considered lower risk, which typically saves them between 2 and 15 percent on insurance premiums. For more information about UCAOA Accreditation, click here. You can also purchase UCAOA's self-assessment tool, which allows organizations to uncover policies and procedures in need of improvement.

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SPONSORED CONTENT

MEETINGS & EDUCATION

Convention spotlight: Hands-on Clinical Boot CampUCAOA The 2015 Spring Convention (April 27-30 in Chicago) will feature many new and expanded pre-convention courses including the two-day Hands-on Clinical Boot Camp (April 26-27). This in-depth course provides an affordable, succinct approach for obtaining the clinical skills most used and needed in urgent care, and is ideal for nurse practitioners, physician assistants and physicians new to urgent care or needing a refresher.

Day one (April 26) of the boot camp will begin with a 1-hour lecture followed by hands-on practice where participants will apply and remove fiberglass and plaster splints and casts while determining the appropriate application for most common upper and lower extremity injuries. The day will conclude with a 1-hour lecture on x-ray and clinical cases.

Day two (April 27) of the boot camp affords attendees the option to pick and choose half-day sessions to meet their needs. New for this year are the Basic Suturing and Musculoskeletal Exam sessions, which join the updated sessions Advanced Suturing and Joint Injections.

Register today to ensure your seat at the Hands-on Clinical Boot Camp. Class size is limited to ensure an optimal instructor-student experience: “The program was excellent! Great class size, not too many people to get good one-on-one help, but enough to enjoy others’ experiences.”

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PRODUCT SHOWCASE

PRACTICE MANAGEMENT

7 secrets to keep loyal patients for lifeKevinMD.comLoyal patients are the lifeblood of an urgent care center. Devoted patients are worth their weight in gold. A loyal patient panel will stay with you (and pay you) through sickness and in health. While urgent care is a consumer-driven industry and customer service is top of mind, here are a few simple reminders for center physicians and staff that can easily be overlooked or forgotten during a busy day.

Vaccine exemptions and the measles outbreak: 5 things to knowBecker's Infection Control & Clinical QualityNationally, 91.9 percent of children aged 19 to 35 months have received the recommended dose of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine. But some parents choose to not vaccinate their children against illnesses like measles, for various reasons. This article lists the five things to note about the perception of the measles, current and changing vaccination laws and why the debate is so important in the U.S. Item 4 points out some states are looking to broaden their vaccine exemptions, even in the face of one of the largest measles outbreaks in recent history.

Insurance special enrollment periodUCAOA via CMSOpen enrollment in the Health Insurance Marketplace ended on February 15, but some of your patients may qualify for a Special Enrollment Period if they have had certain qualifying life events, such as:

Having a baby, adopting a child

Getting married

Losing other health coverage

Being denied Medicaid or CHIP coverage

Gaining citizenship

Click here for more information on other qualifying life events and how to apply for a Special Enrollment Period, and remember, enrollment for Medicaid and CHIP is available year-round.

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IDEA OF THE WEEK

Start a social media charity campaignUCAOA via Rockwall Urgent Care Texas-based Rockwall Urgent Care partners with Meals on Wheels this month to create an interactive social media charity campaign. Rockwall Urgent Care will donate $1 (up to $250) for each new like they receive on Facebook for the month of February. Rockwall Urgent Care Marketing Director Leslie Wilson said "We're humbled and delighted to be a part of this campaign. It's a pleasure to represent such a great company and a wonderful, caring staff." Rockwall Urgent Care supports many local, non-profit groups and school programs; each month the center selects one to support. Wilson said "Facebook 'like' campaigns have been a good way to increase our exposure (in a very positive way) in the community, while supporting local groups that do so much good."

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Additional Resource: Are you a UCAOA member doing great things? Let us know about it by emailing amannina@ucaoa.org and send any photos you may have.

FEATURED COMPANIES

MEMBERS IN THE NEWS

Righttime appoints Dr. Newman as VP of Medical ServicesPR NewswireRighttime Medical Care has named UCAOA President Nathan Newman, MD, FAAFP, as its Vice President of Medical Services. In his role at Righttime, Dr. Newman will be responsible for managing patient care and clinicians, developing best practice medical and process management protocols, implementing new service lines, collaborating with community healthcare systems to transform clinical integration and deliver coordinated patient care, and executing long-term strategies for expansion. "We are pleased to welcome Dr. Newman to oversee all of Righttime's medical services. He brings a wealth of clinical and managerial experience to our leadership team," says CEO Dr. Robert G. Graw, Jr.

CareWell Urgent Care names Bianca Wilfork as spokespersonUCAOA via CareWell Urgent Care CareWell Urgent Care recently announced that Bianca Wilfork will be their new spokesperson. The wife of Super Bowl champion New England Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork, Bianca has been using urgent care centers for her family's health needs for many years. "I've been a fan of urgent care centers since living in Florida as a single mom," Bianca said. Now a resident of Franklin, MA and mother of three children, Bianca has teamed up with CareWell to help educate consumers about their offerings which include treatment from Board-certified doctors for all non-threatening, but still urgent illnesses and medical conditions.

Urgent care boom changing health systemFoster's Daily DemocratThe number of urgent care centers in New Hampshire is rising. Several factors are fueling the growth including interest from private equity groups hoping to cash in on the demand for urgent care. UCAOA Board Member Alan Ayers is quoted in the article as saying "The urgent care centers that have historically been in New Hampshire are really more (of a) hospital-affiliated model. What we are seeing is an increase in entrepreneurial activity around urgent care." The story also highlights how important quality service and patient experience will be for new urgent care centers to survive.

What healthcare leaders can learn from Brian Williams' mistakeBecker's Hospital ReviewCredibility is a valuable asset anyone in a position of power should protect. The case of Brian Williams is a prime example of how valuable credibility is. Although Williams is a person of power in an industry far different than healthcare, executives in the healthcare industry can glean lessons from his story to better understand how fragile credibility is and how healthcare leaders can have theirs called into question.

Electronic decision aids to improve doctor-patient talksFierceHealthITAn international team of researchers has developed a prototype electronic decision aid to help keep medical information up to date and to foster meaningful conversations between patients and their doctors. Their research, published at the British Medical Journal, describes how they built 10 decision aids on antithrombotic drugs.

New products, companies and innovation in healthcareBy Rosemary Sparacio Theranos, Karyopharm Therapeutics, Organovo. These companies are at the forefront of leading-edge technology and new products in the healthcare industry. And the new advances in technology and manufacturing have made many of their products not only possible, but also viable and available. Lab data is usually the first and earliest way to figure out what is causing a disease and what clinical approach can be taken. Theranos has developed a new procedure to change the way in which diagnosis and therapy takes place.